This House Has A Delicious Restaurant - Chapter 5 - The Hunters (2) - Part 5

Just a short walk outside the building, it was unusually quiet around. There were no sounds of conversations or voices urging sales that had been heard just a moment ago.

 

I hadn’t moved a few steps, but it was strange that the noise suddenly stopped like this.

 

Come to think of it, Zerdan said yesterday that he had separated the space in my room so that the sound wouldn’t leak out. Does it also have the function of blocking external sounds?

 

Anyway, this was probably Zerdan’s doing. He was truly an incomprehensible man.

 

There’s no Obella, so why would he do this when it’s just the two of us?

 

Seeing me stop and look around, Terisier finally noticed something was off and furrowed his brow in caution. He seemed to have realized that the surroundings had become unusually quiet.

 

Are they after Terisier’s life, or mine?

 

About five burly men appeared from the alley. Among them was a particularly large man standing in the center.

 

The man in a shabby black sleeveless shirt carried a large axe that matched his size on his shoulder.

 

“You kids figured it out quicker than I thought. We were going to ambush you in the alley.”

 

He had shaggy hair, a long beard, and thick chest hair visible through the stretched sleeveless shirt.

 

…Khan was a good-looking middle-aged man. If they were going to ambush us, I’d rather it be Khan.

 

Their appearance was almost an assault on the eyes.

 

“Are you Zerdan’s men? Waiting until the leader is gone, you must think I’m an easy target.”

 

Yeah, they must have come with determination, because the atmosphere, as well as the axe, was filled with murderous intent.

 

Maybe responding to that murderous intent, Terisier stepped in front of me. His body began to transform slowly. It grew larger and larger, to the point where it was hard to believe it had once been so small until he became a beast.

 

As I watched him transform into a tiger, I vaguely thought that he could transform into more than just a bird.

 

I wondered if I should prepare for battle too, clenching my fists and taking a boxing stance, but Terisier stopped me without even looking back.

 

“Do you think you’ll be any help? Stick to the wall and try not to get in the way.”

 

The huge tiger that Terisier had become completely blocked my view as he spoke. His voice now had a beastly growl mixed in.

 

The silver fur of the giant beast in front of me, matching the base color of Terisier’s hair, gave off a very mysterious vibe. Of course, from the opponent’s point of view, it would be more terrifying than mysterious.

 

Yeah, Terisier was right. It wouldn’t make sense for me to be of any help. I have an ability, but it’s pretty much useless, and my physical strength is nothing compared to those men standing there. I’m confident in a war of words, though.

 

However, the only man on the opposite side who wasn’t scared and was carrying a large axe on his shoulder laughed heartily. He stroked the long beard on his chin, exuding confidence.

 

“What is this, monster hunting time? I love these fantasy-like developments!!”

 

“If you look in the mirror, it’ll be a fantasy world.”

 

“Hmph!”

 

Terisier snorted as if telling me not to provoke them unnecessarily after hearing my mutter.

Yeah, I don’t know about the other guys, but I’ll make sure that guy’s face becomes a fantasy.

 

“Terisier, I’ll target just one of them. That hairy old man.”

 

“What? His physique is overwhelming, what are you talking about?”

 

“Our physiques might be opposites, but… My ability is more suited against that hairy old man.”

 

When I smiled, the man tilted his head in confusion.

 

The long beard under his chin, the visible chest hair through his shabby sleeveless shirt, and his unkempt long hair… He was the perfect candidate for my first battle.

 

Once again, abilities depend on how the user employs them. Some people are naturally gifted, but most are not.

 

Moreover, my ability would likely make everyone laugh or feel bewildered if they heard about it.

 

I acknowledged that my ability seemed useless. But since I have it, I should use it in the right environment.

 

“What, you’re saying a little girl is going to fight me? One swing of this axe and you’ll be in two pieces!”

 

The hairy man, having overheard our conversation, approached us with his axe.

 

This was a different situation from when Khan had difficulty walking. Stepping forward was an extremely reckless choice. I could die a meaningless death right here if I made a mistake.

 

But hiding behind wouldn’t change the fact that there were five enemies, and they could attack me when Terisier was distracted.

 

So it was better to designate and fight the most likely opponent from the start.

 

It seemed like the hairy man was the leader, as the others left me to him and focused solely on Terisier.

 

“Two pieces is too harsh. Please go easy on me.”

 

“What, is this some kind of beauty trap? That’s not going to work on me!”

 

I didn’t plan to win. My goal was to buy time, hoping that Terisier would join in quickly while I held this man back.

 

Despite his words, the hairy man, who laughed at my joke, showed no intention of going easy. He lifted the axe lightly with one hand, his eyes gleaming.

 

“You know I won’t go easy on you in a place like this, right?”

 

“Unfortunately, it seems impossible, doesn’t it?”

 

The axe, held aloft with one hand, aimed at me. At that moment, I made a light gesture, sweeping my hand from bottom to top.

 

“What?!”

 

I heard a bewildered voice. The beard that had reached down to his neck was now abnormally sticking up. Although I had intended to lift it to cover his eyes, it wasn’t long enough for that.

 

Next, I reached out toward his hair.

 

In reality, I didn’t need to reach out, but it looked cooler when Bella did it.

 

The curly hair stood stiffly in all directions like a porcupine. Realizing something was off, the hairy man touched his hair and then yelped when his hand got cut.

 

“What the?! My curly hair turned straight?!”

 

“Shouldn’t you be more worried about your cut hand?”

 

It seemed the stiffened hair was sharper than expected. Seeing this, I felt a bit regretful. If he had a lot of hair on his palms, I could have stiffened it enough to make him unable to grip his axe.

 

Saying it this way sounds a bit odd, though.

 

“So, the little girl has an ability… I hadn’t heard about this, quite a bizarre one. But you can’t do much with this. Just don’t touch my hair, and it’s useless!”

 

The man, laughing heartily, habitually moved to stroke his beard. As he did, I stiffened his beard again, causing a long scratch on his palm.

 

The hairy man, looking down at his bleeding left hand, hardened his expression and gripped his axe tightly with his right hand.

 

“Enough playing around. I don’t have much time to fool around with a little girl. I need to take down that silver-haired kid.”

 

“So, your target is my friend. Then you could just let me go, right?”

 

“Abandoning your comrade and running away? I didn’t think you were so selfish.”

 

He seemed to value loyalty more than expected, getting serious at my words.

 

What a tiresome guy. Expecting me to stay loyal in this situation, knowing we’re mismatched opponents.

 

The hairy man charged at me with his axe. Unlike Khan, he was fast. Despite his large frame, he swiftly closed the distance between us.

 

Watching for the right moment, I used my ability on him when he was five steps away. The ability to make all the hair on his body stand up.

 

I returned the stiffened hair on his head to normal. The disheveled hair slightly covered his eyes, but he didn’t seem to mind, glaring at me with intense eyes.

 

Yeah, keep your eyes wide open.

 

The hair slightly covered his eyes—I used my ability to make it as stiff as possible. As his hair fluttered while he ran, it scratched his skin, and eyelids, and even poked into his eyes.

 

“Ouch! What the hell is this?!”

 

The man dropped his axe and clutched his eyes in pain from the sudden sting. Blood flowed from his eyes.

 

While he paused, I quickly picked up the axe he had been holding. Struggling to lift the heavy axe with both hands, I swung the blunt side towards the back of his knees.

 

With a thud, his knees buckled, and he fell backward, hitting his head and flailing around.

 

But soon he had to stop moving. The more he moved, the more his stiffened hair and beard cut into his face and hands.

 

I pressed down on his chest. The stiffened chest hair bent and jabbed into his chest as I stepped on it.

 

I saw the man hurriedly reach out to grab my ankle. I quickly stepped on the back of his other hand, pressing it hard against the ground.

 

Thanks to my strong use of my ability, and the abundance of hair on the back of his hand, the hair embedded in the ground helped pin his hand down.

 

Avoiding his efforts to move his arm, I slowly circled him, using the same method to pin down both of his legs. The numerous hairs on his ankles were stuck firmly in the ground.

 

Blinded by the hair poking his eyes, he couldn’t avoid my movements and was completely defenseless.

 

Attacking his eyes first was the right choice.

 

With one hand and both legs pinned to the ground, the man grimaced and ground his teeth. He waved his free hand around, trying to grab me, but I moved away.

 

“Damn it!”

 

“Sir, if you keep moving, you’ll get hurt. It’s better to stay still, pinned to the ground. If you keep moving, I might have to cut it off, thinking it’s unnecessary. Besides, the axe is heavy, and I can’t hold it for long.”

 

I picked up the fallen axe again, stretching my arm to point the blade above his arm, ensuring his hand wouldn’t reach my ankle.

 

But if I let go of the axe, it would cut his arm.

 

The man seemed to understand the situation and clenched his fist, then slowly lowered his arm to the ground. I pinned his arm to the ground as well.

 

Normally, I would press down firmly with my foot to secure it, but… if he grabbed me, it would be a problem. So, I carefully pressed down with the wooden end of the axe handle.

 

The man glared at me, seemingly unable to believe he had been subdued so easily. I smiled brightly and mimicked his earlier words.

 

“You knew well that no one would go easy on you in a place like this, right? No matter how insignificant your opponent’s ability seems, you shouldn’t let your guard down. Your life is on the line, after all.”

 

Honestly, I didn’t expect to be able to stop him this effectively, but he was an opponent whose abilities matched mine well.

 

His carelessness also played a part.

 

Dragging the axe, I headed towards Terisier. He seemed to be finishing up as well. Thankfully, he was able to use his beast form’s speed and strength, as all of his opponents were down.

 

Some were lying on the ground, bleeding from the beast’s claw marks on their stomachs, but since they had attacked us first, I didn’t care whether they lived or died.

 

I applauded Terisier, who had fought well against four opponents. The sound of my clapping echoed in the quiet space, causing Terisier to turn and look at me.